what genre is my book

Question: I'm writing a guide type how to book but its not self help and is more like a funny novel. What genre does this belong to? For example it resembles books like 'why men love bitches.'

Answer: With nonfiction, "How to" is a genre, subdivided according to the subject matter (for instance, relationshps). These are books that tend to present information and advice.

If your book is novel-like, you could be looking at creative nonfiction, if you are recounting events that happened to others. If you are writing about events from your own life, you could be writing memoir or autobiography.

There are also inspirational books or fables such as The Celestine Prophesy, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, or The Alchemist.

And there is a lot of grey area between these genres and categoriees.

If you are unsure, what you might do do is simply describe the essential features of your book and the audience you are writing it for in your query letter. Mention a few books it is similar to. Then let the agent or editor figure out which shelf it belongs on in the bookstore. That is part of their job.

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